Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty Retires from Overwatch for VALORANT

Shane “Rawkus” Flaherty has departed the Houston Outlaws — and retired from professional Overwatch — to play VALORANT professionally, he announced on Twitter on Saturday.

Rawkus played for FaZe Clan’s Overwatch roster for over a year before the Overwatch League was established. He was a member of the Outlaws’ inaugural roster, announced with the team branding in October of 2017. He was the team’s sole flex support for the 2018 and 2019 seasons before Jun-keun “Rapel” Kim was signed for 2020.

Recent rumors have suggested Rawkus would join Overwatch League pros Corey “Corey” Nigra and Zack “ZachaREEE” Lombardo on the FaZe Clan Valorant roster. While not yet confirmed, the move would come just in time for the FaZe Clan Invitational, the Ignition Series tournament hosted by the organization, which runs from August 6th-9th.

The Outlaws, as well as his current and former teammates and colleagues, were quick to offer their well-wishes.

https://twitter.com/Outlaws/status/1289637055438430213

This departure leaves the Outlaws with only Jiri “LiNkzr” Masalin, Daniel “Boink” Pence and Austin “Muma” Wilmot remaining of the inaugural roster. Former flex tank Matt “coolmatt” Iorio currently holds an offstage role with the team.

For more updates on Rawkus, the Outlaws, and the rest of the pro Overwatch and VALORANT scenes, stay tuned to TGH and our social media accounts.

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